Sukari started her walk with Anthi dangling from her muzzle, still fast asleep. Time passed by before ending up having to tackle some steep inclines and large boulders. She chose this challenging path on purpose, being a less obvious route to take with a cub in her mouth, making sure there would be a lower chance of her being followed or tracked. She wanted to avoid any awkward explanations or goodbyes. This caused Anthi to swing from side to side and bobble up and down. Still, this didn't stir him from his slumber.

            "All that time rolling around in my belly must have been exhausting, huh Anthi? " She thought to herself, cracking a faint smile.

            After tackling these obstacles, she now had a height advantage and could look over to the land ahead, the moon and stars shining off the tops of the trees and hills, then being consumed by a soup of mist underneath. She gazed at this natural display of beauty and tranquillity. Her tail flicked with an odd slight spark of unknown excitement in what lay ahead. This could be dangerous yet also could be the start of a more promising future life. She changed her heading and went for the smoother-looking path that disappeared into the mist down below, she would be blind by it, but in a way, it would be the safest.

            She soon started to feel isolated as she was consumed by the thick soup of water vapour on her descent, meaning she could hardly see in front of her. No help would come in time if something now happened, such as being attacked by something hungry. She'd already taken this risk into account before leaving, and she had to go regardless. Still, a feeling of vulnerability travelled through her mind and body. She kept herself calm by reassuring herself that if she couldn't hear, smell, or see any predators, then neither could they! The mist was doing its job by lessening the chance of crossing paths with undesirables.

            More time had passed, and she had spent a good part of the night walking. She was now long gone from the group and the farthest she had ever been from them. The air around her soon started to feel colder, the dew from the grass soaking into her paws and spreading up her legs. Her muscles began twitching intermittently, the beginning signs of shivering. Anthi started to whimper slightly from the cold and had begun to wake up. The whimpering soon turned to little growls; the cold was getting to him. It was not suitable for such a newborn to be in this situation, but being back where they came from wasn't a good one either in her mind. She just didn't expect it would turn this cold. "Hey hey hey," she said softly through the sides of her muzzle, trying to comfort him.

            Sukari knew his growls would attract attention, she tried to calm him down, but his growls grew louder. He started to wriggle around in protest, and his paws were flapping around, trying to grab her muzzle while his own muzzle suckled the air. He must be cold and hungry! Sukari's heartbeat started to race, getting increasingly anxious about the noise he was making. She made cooing sounds to try and soothe him as she picked up her pace, hoping to come across anything that would resemble somewhat of a temporary shelter to address Anthi's needs. Her anxiety grew as she could hardly see anything that lay ahead. Her breathing increased, and her heart started to race as Anthi consistently continued to protest louder.

            SNAP! Sukari jumped as she stood on a small old branch lying across her path. She was so focused on looking ahead that she paid less attention to what lay below. She winced at her stupidity and looked down. A few more branches lay in her path. She carefully placed her paws in-between them as she continued to walk, making sure she wouldn't make the same stupid mistake again.

            This night luck was on her side. She could see a large dark shape in front of her coming into view. She slowed down her pace and approached it with caution. She had come across a large boulder with a hole dug out underneath. Looking at the size of the hole, it seemed like a den made by an African wild dog. She briefly placed Anthi by the side of the rock. She then stuck her head inside, checking for any fresh scents. The burrow inside smelt unoccupied and looked like it was just large enough for her and Anthi, although the entrance was naturally too small for a lion.

            Using her claws, she started to dig around the entrance to widen the hole just enough so she could squeeze her body through. Being only built by African wild dogs, it was a little cramped, but most importantly, it was empty. The past occupants must have grown up and left it abandoned.

            Sukari poked her head out of the entrance and dragged Anthi inside. She Curled up slightly to try and regain some body heat. Anthi soon enough lay right up against Sukari's stomach, shuffling and digging himself in as deep as possible, instinct present even in the youngest of lions for a need to keep warm. Sukari curled around him more to muffle the noises he continued to make. Soon enough, the growls started to fade, and his body stopped wriggling around as much. He then began to calm down overall. Sukari stretched her head over and started licking him to give him extra comfort.

            Now that Anthi was cosy and warm, there was another matter to deal with, he was hungry! Luckily, that wasn't a problem for him, though Sukari momentarily thought about what she would do when her own stomach started complaining. She pushed this thought aside and concentrated on the more important matter of the two. She didn't have to do much to direct him, though he was already off shuffling downwards from her stomach, rubbing his muzzle on her skin, trying to find that all-important food source.

            His eyes were not at the stage of opening yet, so he had to rely on feeling alone. Soon, he struggled, yet Sukari watched on rather than help him. This is not to be mistaken for neglect, she cared for him immensely, yet she didn't want to do everything for him. He had to learn fast about self-nursing. Hard times potentially lay ahead, and there may be times when Sukari may be asleep, weak, or injured, and he would have to feed himself. Every little bit of practice early on helps. Anthi continued to struggle and soon started to protest again by making unwanted noise. Given the situation, she was just about to lean over and help him this time around, though soon, to her amazement, Anthi then found her teat, and latched on.

            Sukari lay on her side and released the tension that had shrouded her body from walking and finding emergency shelter. She huffed a sigh of relief through her nose. Anthi was now almost silent as he suckled, making the odd chirp now and then but nothing too loud that would carry through the air. Sukari continued to calm down little by little. She was in a near-perfect shelter, warm, cosy and keeping Anthi quiet. She agreed that this would be a wise place to stay for the rest of the night. She couldn't bear thinking about being out in the cold again, making Anthi uncomfortable. Staying here until morning may bring other risks, but the benefits of staying outweighed the risks if she continued walking tonight.

            The most powerful bond between a mother and a cub was nursing. It cements the connection between them. Sukari lifted her head and watched in awe as her hungry little furball filled himself. This was only the second time she had nursed him, and it still felt surreal being a mum and to such a cute, tiny, and helpless creation at that. Without her, her cub would perish. This sense of responsibility grew with every moment. She gazed at Anthi for a while, giving him tender licks on his back and head. She then lay her head back down on the ground, letting Anthi continue his feeding undisturbed. The knowing of creating this life from inside her own body, which now provides him with essential food for living outside of it, is something only a mother can describe. A mother's milk makes the newborn grow strong quickly, so in normal circumstances, he can be introduced back into the safety of the pride and father. In Sukari's case, Anthi had to grow up strong and quick for self-survival in a life of just the two of them. No pride and no father.

            After laying and letting Anthi feed, Sukari's eyes grew heavy. Her birth the previous day had been exhausting, and she only had a small nap before waking up in the middle of the night. She had now made a decent head start on her journey and found a proper, safe place to rest. Her body began to go into a more relaxed and sleepy state. She lifted her head and looked down towards her son, who had now finished feeding and had curled up into a ball close to Sukari's warm, soft belly. "Feeling better now, huh?" she whispered and chuckled.

            Sukari’s muzzle opened wide as she took a good long yawn with her eyelids half-closed, itching to close fully. She needed sleep, but as much of a blessing this den was, she started to feel a little paranoid about where she was and who could be potentially around. Under normal circumstances, a lioness can choose a den better when there is a clearer view of her surroundings, but of course, tonight she couldn't. There could be a hyena pack just over the next hill for all she knew.

            She suddenly had an idea, sparked from a fond memory as a cub. It may not be completely foolproof, but it gave a better sense of security. She slowly shuffled herself to the burrow's opening, ensuring not to disturb Anthi. She squeezed herself out and headed towards the branches she came across just before finding this place. She needed to be quick as she would get too worried about her son being alone for too long. As she found out earlier, new-borns can be unpredictable, and predators can be even more so.

Once she found the branches, she went back and forth, picking a few up each time and placing them all around the entrance. Hopefully, if anything comes near and wants to investigate the hole, they may make a decent snapping noise when accidentally stepped on like she had discovered, much to her distress. This branch idea wasn't perfect, but it would give Sukari enough warning to grab Anthi, sprint out the entrance and run, hopefully taking the approaching animal by surprise. This was better than the animal sneaking into the burrow undetected and trapping Sukari, with nowhere to run. New-borns are an easy ball of meat to snatch. Indeed, Sukari could fend off one animal in this burrow, but all it takes is for a pack of them to turn up, and she would not be able to defend herself and Anthi from all of them.

            With the Branches in place, Sukari now had a better sense of security. She went back inside the burrow to be greeted by an awake Anthi. He must have felt her absence by feeling slightly chillier once more. Surprisingly, this time he wasn't making any noise. Many baby animals have this instinct to keep quiet if the mother isn't present. Sukari was glad and surprised that Anthi had done this. A new mother doesn't know everything from the start. She picked him up by the nape of his neck, now noticing the plump belly of a well-fed cub. She then placed him between her two front paws, cradling him closely to make him warm again.

            "No wonder you were complaining earlier. You sure were hungry!" She cooed softly and again chuckled to herself.

            Anthi lifted his nose into the air, making short little sniffs. Sukari lowered her muzzle, intending to give him a lick goodnight. However, as soon as her muzzle lowered, Anthi beat her to it. His little tongue poked out and licked the very tip of Sukari's nose. Her eyes started to water up with a heartfelt smile. She closed her eyes and embraced him as a deep soft purr vibrated in her throat. The sound and Vibration gave Anthi a soothing lullaby of sorts, soon making him take a big yawn, ending with a little squeak.

She then began to hum an actual lullaby, a particular soothing arrangement of soft notes that she remembered as a cub. It’s now the first time the melody has been passed onto her own cub. She couldn’t remember the origin, but she had always carried it in her memory. Other bittersweet memories were attached to it though, and she couldn’t help but choke up in places. However, this didn’t stop Anthi drifting off, soon into a gentle slumber.

            She gave him one last lick on his head with her continued warm smile.

            "Goodnight..." she whispered.

Sukari gazed out the entrance into the night. Under the mist, she could not gaze further upon the stars or the moon like she used to with Sheek. Now it was just a plain blanket of nothingness. Even the sounds of the nocturnal insects and small animals were not heard either. The cold mist must be keeping everything sheltered away, just like they both were. The whole night outside was just silent, cold, and dark. It felt lifeless. It was an empty night. Yet inside, the burrow was full of warmth, love, and life.

            Sukari lowered her head over her paws with Anthi tucked and curled up in between. She curled her body into a ball to hold as much heat as possible for them both. Her eyes soon closed and she swiftly drifted off to sleep.

            Even though the night was empty, the bond between mother and son could not feel anymore full.